Coleman students experience the blues

Musician Larry McCray performs at Coleman High School Tuesday to help promote two VFW scholarship programs. McCray was given a Comets football jersey before his concert.

Musician Larry McCray performs at Coleman High School Tuesday to help promote two VFW scholarship programs. McCray was given a Comets football jersey before his concert.

Photo: NICK KING | Nking@mdn.net

Photo: NICK KING | Nking@mdn.net

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Musician Larry McCray performs at Coleman High School Tuesday to help promote two VFW scholarship programs. McCray was given a Comets football jersey before his concert.

Musician Larry McCray performs at Coleman High School Tuesday to help promote two VFW scholarship programs. McCray was given a Comets football jersey before his concert.

Photo: NICK KING | Nking@mdn.net

Coleman students experience the blues

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When blues musician Larry McCray left his job as an assembly line worker for General Motors in 1989, he knew he was rolling the proverbial dice.

Was it truly a good idea, he thought, to leave a steady job in Saginaw and become a traveling musician? What if the move bombed?

"Crazy, right?" McCray joked Tuesday, as he was preparing for a performance in front of a packed Coleman High School auditorium. "It was like jumping off the top of a tall skyscraper. I didn't know what to expect."

He didn't make the decision for the money -- McCray considers himself lucky to be making a living with his second career choice.

Rather, the Arkansas native, guitarist and singer is constantly thrilled at the prospect of traveling around the world and making new friends and fans, which have grown immensely in numbers since he began playing the blues 25 years ago.

"The people are the prize," McCray said. "If you have the people on your side, you can do anything you want."

The crowd of high school students in Coleman showed their support Tuesday, applauding, screaming and whistling as the four-member Larry McCray Band capped off the school day.

McCray was invited to perform at the high school and also promote two VFW scholarship programs. Middle school and high school students can submit essays to be judged in the Patriot Pen and Voice of Democracy programs, respectively.

Last year, the highest scholarship amount was awarded at $30,000.

McCray's story is one that still amazes Pat Murray, a member of VFW Post 1071 in Coleman and a longtime friend.

"I just want to show you guys that whatever aspirations you have, you can do," Murray told the hundreds of students gathered in the high school auditorium.

As a token of their appreciation, the Coleman High football coaching staff handed McCray a jersey with his last name sewn on the back, just prior to the show.

Then, it was all guitars, drums and keyboard for the remainder of the afternoon, as the band played instrumentals such as "Blue River Rain" and more country-flavored songs like "Broken Promises."

Coleman juniors Nicholas Merritt, Dominic Pnacek and Kelsi Jones were glad to get out of class early and listen to some new music they had not heard before.

"I'm basically into any kind of music, and I thought they were great," said Merritt, 16.

The McCray band has upcoming appearances in Flint, Kansas, Switzerland and Japan, among other places across the globe. The group consists of bassist Kerry Clark, keyboard player Sam Doan and drummer Steve McCray, Larry's brother.

As Larry McCray prepares for a worldwide tour throughout the remainder of 2011 and into 2012, he said the trip to Coleman was particularly refreshing. He resides in Davison.

"We all have our trials and tribulations from whatever walk of life we come from," he said. "If you are able to sustain that into adulthood and do all right for yourself, then the proper thing to do is to give somebody else the opportunity that you didn't get."

Students interested in applying for the scholarships can do so until the Nov. 15 deadline. Application information can be obtained through the Coleman VFW post, 104 N. Fourth St., or through the school district.